Exo-Terra Nano Tall Setups

[NewspaperFort]

Awesome stuff there! How are all your other tanks doing?
I'd love to see a "tour" post with new shots of each of your setups!



All assorted moss, liverwort and assorted bryophyte donations may be sent to me directly at:
...

a quick search of bryophyte led me to discovering the name of a liverwort that I have been dying to ID. Thank you for having similar interests!!! ;]

---------- Post added at 01:29 AM ---------- Previous post was at 01:11 AM ----------

Progress of Utric fulva's future home, still playing around with the mud levels. Thinking I want a slope and have to allow the mud to dry some to harden up so it will retain the shape more over time when wet. Sounds weird but it seems to work.

What wood is that that you are able to use despite the humidity / constant contact with moist soil?

Very beautiful set ups, extraordinarily beautiful grow room by the way. Truly.

 

[mass]

What wood is that that you are able to use despite the humidity / constant contact with moist soil?

I prefer cork bark & driftwood myself.

 

[RSS]

What wood is that that you are able to use despite the humidity / constant contact with moist soil?

Very beautiful set ups, extraordinarily beautiful grow room by the way. Truly.

Aquatic quality driftwoods such as African Root and Mopani Wood, they will last decades underwater without much noticable decay. They do decay and leech into the water but the rate is ignorable on the good stuff.

I prefer cork bark & driftwood myself.

I've been using cork bark for easy backgrounds and with the wet/humid conditions I tend to create...I not sure of the long term use of it. So far so good.

I trade/sell alot of the plants I'm growing to frog people and the plants seem to do just fine with them. I've been toying with the idea of adding a heli to one of these setups but it will likely be in the spring when I divide up the next H. minor. I just need to figure out how wet I can keep them long term first.

 

[RSS]

Well while the fern Pilularia globulifera is a nice plant it was not a smart move to put it into one of these tanks....So I'll be removing it once I set-up a new home for it.

DSC_0117 by Simprs, on Flickr

Added a few more mini's into this one. Most are orchids so the growth rate is super slow.

DSC_0119 by Simprs, on Flickr

 

[Jcal]

I'm really liking these setups a lot. Any updates for us!

 

[RSS]

I'm really liking these setups a lot. Any updates for us!

Not yet, most of the plants in there are orchids and grow slower than snails.

 

[RSS]

I think I've repaired all the broken photo's in this thread now.

I've been doing better these last few weeks (really bad few months medically) so I'll post an update.

Here is the one I'm still planning on getting Utricularia rostrata started in, but wow it that plant being difficult to get started in there. I'm growing it in very similar conditions/medium without any real problems I just can't get a foothold in this tank. If my health holds out I'll get another division in there by the weekend.

DSC_0011 by randallsimpson, on Flickr

Utricularia sanderonsii 'Blue' setup

DSC_0010 by randallsimpson, on Flickr

Nice and weedy.

DSC_0003 by randallsimpson, on Flickr

So many leaves and only two flowers right now, I rarely have more and 5 at any time. Generally 1-3.

DSC_0005 by randallsimpson, on Flickr

I'm starting on a new one to hold either Utricularia geminiloba, humboltii or what I believe is alpina, the medium will be a lot wetter in this one. I'm just concerned that a 12" high tank will not be tall enough if the geminiloba or humboltii flowers, the "alpina" would easily fit. I'll have to dig through older photo's and see if I can remember how tall those stalks get. Any comments or suggestions for the Utric would be helpful.

I'll try and get a build log posted for the new one, since I'll be going the great stuff/silicone route for the background with a piece of driftwood and a cork round build in. I'm thinking of a mix of tree fern fibers and sphagnum moss for the medium.

 

[Jcal]

Glad to hear a positive update on your health and setups. I love these setups. The sandersonii carpet is awesome!

Do you have a recommendation for mud to use in a similar setup? Something similar to the product you are using?

 

[RSS]

Glad to hear a positive update on your health and setups. I love these setups. The sandersonii carpet is awesome!

Do you have a recommendation for mud to use in a similar setup? Something similar to the product you are using?

Sorry I haven't been able to find anything similar in the states or a source online for it. I know there are a few aquatic "muds" that planted aquarium people are using with good results, but I haven't tested it myself since I have a good supply of my own mud.

 

[DragonsEye]

Neat set-ups. I'd like to get a couple Exo-terra nano tanks but they tend to be a bit more pricey than I like.

That Pilularia globulifera is pretty nifty -- though I can understand in your particular setup I can understand your disappointment. Had you thought about retaining a clump in that terr -- along the background -- but limiting its expansion by potting it? If it could handle a lot of "foot traffic" (or more accurately "belly traffic") it might be useful in a snake tank.

 

[RSS]

I started the new one today so here are the photo's.

DSC_0532 by randallsimpson, on Flickru

If you have never worked with silicone before the stuff is VERY sticky and will get on anything you barely touch. I always wear rubber disposable gloves when working with it. Also it has a very strong smell so working in a well ventilated area is a must.

Here I covered the back of the tank with 100% black silicone, a very thin layer is all that is needed. For smaller setups like this one the silicone layer is not as useful as it is in larger ones. The silicone holds onto the glass better than the great stuff will, so adding the layer will help the great stuff stay in place. Also, if any of the "background" sides will be visible the silicone will look much better against the glass than the great stuff does. If you get silicone on the non background glass is not a big deal, after it dries a razorblade will take it right off.

DSC_0533 by randallsimpson, on Flickr

And now I have to wait 24 hours for it cure.

 

[RSS]

Neat set-ups. I'd like to get a couple Exo-terra nano tanks but they tend to be a bit more pricey than I like.

That Pilularia globulifera is pretty nifty -- though I can understand in your particular setup I can understand your disappointment. Had you thought about retaining a clump in that terr -- along the background -- but limiting its expansion by potting it? If it could handle a lot of "foot traffic" (or more accurately "belly traffic") it might be useful in a snake tank.

They do go on sale about twice a year at the chain pet stores, but even then they are a lot more than standard tanks. For me the doors are worth it.

The Pilularia sends out runners and would have to be trimmed to keep confined. I've sold a lot of it to frog people and they seem to like it, but I've never had any experiences with traffic over it.

I moved the Pilularia into a larger setup and remade the Exo-terra, here it is new Exo-terra. I'm still working on getting it planted and I'm not yet happy with the medium height/moisture. I think I need to remove a 1/4" of the medium to allow more standing water before I move in a Utricularia.

DSC_0535 by randallsimpson, on Flickr

 

[Jcal]

ive never understood why smaller tanks are just as expensive at larger tanks. 2.5 and 5 gallon tanks are almost always more expensive than 10 gallons.

i like the nanos too and would love to get a couple. ill look for them to go onsale. i like the doors as well. i wish i could find some of those vertical dart frog kits that will fit smaller tanks. 10g is as small as i seen them. then again a $20 kit adaptor and a $15 10g tank puts you right back to what a nano would cost!

ill toy around with some mud ideas. ill let you know if i make any headway.

great tip about skipping the great stuff step and using silicon on glass.

 

[DragonsEye]

The Pilularia sends out runners and would have to be trimmed to keep confined.

Pretty typical behavior for ferns in general. Particularly if the runners are often sent out below the substrate, planting a potted fern, IME, greatly reduces the amount of trimming one needs to do. No way to completely restrain a fern though.

ive never understood why smaller tanks are just as expensive at larger tanks. 2.5 and 5 gallon tanks are almost always more expensive than 10 gallons.

Yeah, that's the part that always "kills" me, too. I'm not sure if the logic is that manufacturers feel there is less of a market for them (which if they would lower the prices the volume sold would likely go up considerably, I suspect), or if they feel it is a "new" enough idea to merit charging more.

ill toy around with some mud ideas. ill let you know if i make any headway.

Though I've never tried this, I wonder if covering the mud used with a plastic mesh -- like the mesh bags some fruits or veggies are sold in -- would be useful in keeping it where and how one wants it. A thinner layer could be laid over that to hid the mesh and plant roots should easily be able to pass through it.

 

[RSS]

Here is the progress from this afternoon. I had to silicone the driftwood in place so I could turn the tank on its side to fill the background with great stuff.
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/39807474@N07/9564391427/" title="DSC_0536 by randallsimpson, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3804/9564391427_01d36e0cbd.jpg" width="334" height="500" alt="DSC_0536"></a>

If you have never used great stuff before I would highly recommend buying the cheapest can you can find and playing around with it before adding it to a tank or around driftwood. Great stuff is very sticky and expands. Here is the tank after I added what I hope is the proper amount of great stuff. In a few hours I'll know if I did it right.
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/39807474@N07/9564391095/" title="DSC_0537 by randallsimpson, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3726/9564391095_4de8ec8080.jpg" width="334" height="500" alt="DSC_0537"></a>

 

[Tony C]

ive never understood why smaller tanks are just as expensive at larger tanks. 2.5 and 5 gallon tanks are almost always more expensive than 10 gallons.

It is because of the labor involved. The cost of the glass is negligible, but a small tank requires just as much labor to build as a medium one. If anything they are more difficult because you have to fit your hands in a smaller space without smudging the glass with silicone or hitting a freshly done seam while moving to the next. I charged a premium for smaller sizes when I was building custom vivs for the extra trouble.

 

[Maiden]

I have the same exo-terra tall, for some big nepenthes. I just had to remove the original lid, and put a glass on top.

 

[EntHerptology]

Some great naturalistic setups you have there! I am using the same construction technique right now on a 29 gallon Rhacodactylus build.

 

[RSS]

Here are some photo's after the great stuff has had time to expand and harden.
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/39807474@N07/9571714158/" title="DSC_0541 by randallsimpson, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3829/9571714158_dd919401f5.jpg" width="500" height="334" alt="DSC_0541"></a>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/39807474@N07/9571713758/" title="DSC_0542 by randallsimpson, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3730/9571713758_35f10a7247.jpg" width="334" height="500" alt="DSC_0542"></a>

 

[tatorger]

ugh! i want to make one sooooo bad! any advice on setting up one of my own?